H.R. 5444 — Medical Laboratory Personnel Shortage Relief Act of 2025

This section includes medical laboratory personnel and services in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) programs by (1) expanding the definition of primary health services to include medical laboratory services (in addition to family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, dentistry, and mental health) and defining medical laboratory personnel as individuals training in or employed in accredited medical laboratory science programs or positions examining human-derived materials for diagnosis, prevention, or treatment (including phlebotomists, medical laboratory assistants, histotechnologists, laboratory scientists, technicians, and genetic counselors); (2) directing the Secretary to identify medical laboratory health professional target areas (analogous to maternity care target areas) and assign NHSC medical laboratory personnel to them; and (3) adding medical laboratory personnel to eligibility for the NHSC Loan Repayment Program, including those with a degree in medical laboratory science. (As background, the NHSC assigns health professionals to health professional shortage areas to address workforce shortages; the Loan Repayment Program provides up to $50,000 in loan repayment for two years of service, with extensions available.)

This section establishes a medical laboratory personnel education program, authorizing the HHS Secretary to make grants or enter into contracts with eligible entities (i.e., accredited nonprofit hospitals, schools of allied health, or nonprofit entities sponsoring accredited internship programs required for professional certification) to (1) plan, develop, operate, or participate in accredited medical laboratory professional education programs awarding associate’s, bachelor’s, graduate degrees, or certificates; and (2) recruit, train, and develop faculty for such programs. In making awards, the Secretary must prioritize entities that (1) utilize innovative clinical teaching approaches, (2) train individuals from rural, underrepresented, or disadvantaged backgrounds, (3) teach collaboration among health professionals, or (4) provide training in cultural competency and health literacy; awards are for three years, with $25 million authorized for the first full fiscal year after enactment and such sums as necessary for subsequent fiscal years.